Thermogravimetric and Kinetic Study of Pyrolysis of Corn Cob Biomass

Agricultural residues are potential renewable biomass sources for bio-energy production. The objective of the work is to determine the pyrolysis kinetic parameters of corn cob biomass. Three different heating rates of 10, 20, and 30 °C/min were taken into account in the thermogravimetric analysis. The Kissinger, Flynn Wall Ozawa (FWO), and Kissinger Akahira Sunose (KAS) model-free methods were employed to calculate the kinetic parameters by the use of the data obtained from TGA. The thermal decomposition process shows three basic phases of pyrolysis: removal of moisture content, primary and secondary pyrolysis. The experimental values were compared with the obtained values from FWO and KAS models; implying that the model values were in good agreement with experimental results. The values of kinetic parameters obtained from Kissinger, FWO, and KAS methods are very similar to their average values of 115, 136, and 131 kJmol-1, respectively. Gas Chromatograph-Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis of pyrolysis products is obtained, showing that bio-char and bio-oil contain 10 and 15 different compounds, respectively.